How To Navigate And Beat Shackamaxon In Scotch Plains
By Sam McPherson
Southwest of Newark, New Jersey, there's a very old golf course that just got a recent facelift in Scotch Plains, and it's waiting to be played if you know a member there. The Shackamaxon Country Club features one of Albert W. Tillinghast's greatest creations, and despite some troubled times in the last decade, the golf course—originally built in 1916 and revised a bit in the last few years under new ownership—provides a daunting challenge for any golfer with ambition and gumption.
Layout & Green Fees
Tillinghast also designed famous championship courses like Baltusrol, Bethpage Black and Winged Foot, so you know what you're getting with Shackamaxon. The famous 18th hole includes the first island green Tillinghast ever designed, as well, providing a crazy finish to any round of golf. There's a legend that two-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw once flew in by helicopter to play this hole, although it might be apocryphal.
The current layout is very long: Par-70 and 6,599 yards from the blue tees. There are only three par-5 holes on the course (averaging almost 522 yards per), but there are five par-3 holes that enable a golfer to go low on a good iron day. There are also white, green and red (ladies) tees for golfers that want a lighter experience.
Remember the dress code, too—a collared shirt is required, and denim is forbidden—and you must get a member to let you play with him or her as a guest. The fees for guests run between $75-99, which is very good for this kind of quality course.
Hardest Hole
The seventh hole is long and narrow, and if you miss the fairway, you're in the trees. That's every golfer's nightmare. At 449 yards from the blue tees, the hole requires two very well-struck shots. The fairway has a slight left angle to it, and if you don't anticipate that, there's a bunker waiting for your tee shot. Depending on your driving length, you'll face another narrow shot on your approach to a small green with multiple frontside bunkers protecting each side. You really can't bump-and-run one up on this green.
Easiest Hole
We all like par-3 holes, right? Well, the second hole at Shackamaxon is easy. At just 164 yards long, you can either go right for the green or lay up short. Laying up saves you from some sand traps lined up across the front of the green, if you don't think you have the right club to reach the green from the tee. However, the green on this hole is huge—the biggest one on the course, in fact. With that big of a target, it may not matter where you hit it from initially. The green is really tough to miss.
Craziest Hole
The 18th hole is a great finishing hole, with the aforementioned island green. At 393 yards, this par-4 layout isn't easy, but it's also not as hard as you might think. There's a very wide fairway, relatively free of distraction from sand and water. How long you can go down the left of the fairway off the tee is what truly dictates the difficulty of your approach shot. Since the green is on an island, you need to stick the approach. Luckily, it's a medium-sized green, but you'll want to sky the ball onto the green and hope it doesn't roll off into the water.
Sneakiest Hole
The ninth hole closes the front of the course with some very deceptive design. At first, the hole looks very straight and simple—a 349-yard, par-4 layout. However, the fairway narrows the closer you get to the hole, and then the green is surrounded by bunkers—and it may be the small green on the course, shaped like a little kidney bean. If you get away with a slightly errant tee shot, be warned you will not get away with an errant approach to the ninth green. The sand will make you pay.
Sam McPherson is a freelance writer covering baseball, football, basketball, golf, hockey and fantasy sports for CBS, AXS and Examiner. He also is an Ironman triathlete and certified triathlon coach.
